An official Apple app on your Android device? Yes, it's true. With Apple Music for Android, Cupertino's first real Android app, Apple crossed the enemy lines and opened up its music streaming service to Google partisans. Apple Music for Android maintains most of the iOS original's good parts. However, the same flaws have carried over as well. Furthermore, without the support of the Apple ecosystem, Apple Music is less appealing on Android than it is on Apple's mobile devices. While it's not the best streaming music service, it is decent, and recent price drops for college students make it more appealing to that core (but frequently cash-strapped) audience. 

For an in-depth analysis of Apple Music's features, such as its curated playlists, exclusive radio stations, and social network functionality, check out our full review of Apple Music for iPhone. 

On iPhones and iPads with iOS 9 installed, Apple Music just takes over from the previous music app, but on Android it's a separate download. There is no option for streaming from the Web. The service offers a generous 90-day free trial; after that, subscriptions start at $9.99 per month for individual listeners. Six-person family plans cost a very reasonable $14.99 per month. 

As of May 2016, college students receive an even sweeter deal. Knowledge-seekers enrolled in an eligible college or university can get Apple Music for just $4.99 a month. Students can take advantage of the discount for up to four years. Spotify, the Editors' Choice for Android streaming music services, and Tidal offer similar student deals.

Remix
The Apple Music experience on Android is largely the same as the iOS version. We tested on the Moto X and the Nexus 5. The music video for "Hotline Bling" by Drake looked just as good as on the iPhone, and we didn't notice a drop in sound quality when listening to the Insane Clown Posse.

That's good news, but the faithfulness of the port also means many of our issues with Apple Music for iOS remain in this version. There are still bugs, the features remain more gimmicky than useful, and there are still holes in the admittedly impressive music library.

Apple Music for Android also can't leverage the Apple ecosystem the way it can on iOS. Obviously, there's no Siri or Apple Watch support. Unlike most iPhone owners, Android users won't already have a preexisting library of iTunes songs on their devices for Apple Music to complement. If your connection is too poor to stream music, you'd better have some tracks downloaded for offline listening or you're out of luck.

These new and old problems prevent the service from putting up much of a fight against Spotify. But Apple's perfectionist spirit shines through. Apple Music on Android has some slight but appreciated interface and graphic design tweaks to make the app look less like an iOS app and more like other, popular Android apps. 

Play It Again
Apple Music for iPhone has issues, but it's a fine and convenient built-in service for discovering new iTunes songs and listening to the ones you already have. But the download is a tougher sell on Android. While it features most of the same selling points, the ones that are missing make the weaknesses that much worse. A refresh for the service is said to be imminent, and we'll definitely update our review when it's updated. For now, if you want to subscribe to the best Android music streaming services, stick with Spotify and Slacker, our current Editors' Choices for Android streaming music apps. 

This article originally appeared on PCMag.com.